ON THE ROAD

Travel guidebooks such as Lonely Planet and Rough Guide are always great companions on your travels and can help you lead the way and get to the places you want to get to. Smart phones have replaced computers for many travel-related needs; when connected to Wifi, modern phone apps can make your traveling much easier.

How to travel

While traveling you may discover you don’t really need most of the things you’ve brought. Carrying a large backpack can make things unnecessarily difficult for you, whether walking around a city or backcountry trails, using public transportation, catching a ride on a motorcycle taxi, or riding a bike. With a large backpack you might not be able to board a bus, bring it with you on a plane as a carry-on, or put it next to your bed on an overnight train. If you pack wisely and lightly, you will feel more free and you will be able to enjoy your journey much more. Advice, how to pack all you need for a trip in a bag which weighs less than 6 kilos, I share in an article “What to bring on a trip, or how to pack your backpack under 6 kg”.

On a rickshaw / bus / train / plane

Most of long haul buses in tropical climates are fitted with air-conditioning which is usually set to unnecessarily low temperature. For that reason, it is wise to bring a hoodie or a light jumper to prevent catching a cold.

It is advisable to travel only with small backpack as it is easier to store and you can keep it with you on the bus without having to place it in luggage compartment. The biggest advantage is that you can be sure that you and your backpack arrive in your goal destination together.

All blatant and annoying offers from taxi drivers, rickshaw drivers, motorbike drivers etc. can be avoided or refused with a simple white lie – just inform them that you already got your travel sorted or that you are part of a tourist group and your bus and tour guide is nearby. If you ever need to use services of one of these drivers, make sure you agree on the price beforehand.

Similar simple lie you can use if you bump into reps who are hired to offer cheap accommodation nearby. Therefore, it is good to be prepared and find a name of a hotel in advance and claim you already made a reservation there – this might make it easier to turn them down.

When travelling on a night train it is useful to have a small lock to secure the zip on your backpack and light bicycle lock to attach backpack to your seat.

Always check your flight connection at least 24 hours before planned departure when travelling on national or international flights. You can do so either on the airline website or call customer services or via app CheckMyTrip, see 20 travel apps for travelling on your own.